8 Jun 2007

The Toowoomba Rugby League has launched an innovative new community initiative designed to foster the strong bonds between teammates in the sport by educating players to look after themselves and to look after their mates, promoting the positives of living a healthy lifestyle. The "Mates Helping Mates" program aims to provide information and support to young players so they can grow into healthy old men and will be rolled out via a series of workshops over coming months. .

Toowoomba Launches 'Mates Helping Mates' 31.05.07 16:14

The Toowoomba Rugby League is breaking ground with a new community initiative, designed to foster the strong bonds between teammates in rugby league. Working in partnership with QR’s Organisational Health and Wellbeing the Toowoomba Rugby League has launched the “Mates Helping Mates” program.

The “Mates Helping Mates” program is aimed at educating Rugby League players to look after themselves and to look after their mates, promoting the positives of living a healthy lifestyle. The Toowoomba Rugby League aims to provide information and support to our young Rugby League players so that those players can grow into healthy old men.

In 2007 the Toowoomba district has experienced the suicide of three well-known junior rugby league players, bringing the issue to a head

"This is something I’ve been talking about for more than two years," TRL Chairman Noel Davis told the Toowoomba Chronicle recently.

"I’ve decided enough is enough. There has to be something in place that lets our young people know where they can turn and more importantly gives them somewhere to turn.

"It's more than that, in that we also need to equip people with the necessary skills if someone does turn to them for help.

"This could be a young guy whose marriage has broken up and he’s struggling to deal with it or a 16-year-old who is just struggling with growing into a young adult.

"We don't want to lose these people and it’s time we did something instead of sitting back and watching it happen."

In consultation with QR’s Organisational Health and Wellbeing and with the local Rugby League clubs the Toowoomba Rugby League will be running a series of workshops designed at promoting the positive messages related to healthy lifestyles.

The first workshop will be an information session so that the Rugby League community can learn more about the program. The information session will be held on Wednesday the 6th June at the Clive Berghofer Stadium. The information session will feature guest speakers from QR’S Organisational Health and Wellbeing.

The Toowoomba Rugby League in partnership with QR are planning to print brochures and posters that promote the “Mates Helping Mates” program and the support networks that are available to Rugby League players throughout the Darling Downs.

The motto of the “Mates Helping Mates” program is “We want our young men to grow into healthy old men”.

The Toowoomba Rugby League hopes that by promoting the positives of living a healthy lifestyle and by helping to educate our players that support is available that our young Rugby League players will be healthy old men of the future.

For more information please contact:

Chairman of the Toowoomba Rugby League, Mr Noel Davis 0409 055 461 (back)